It's not too late

Editorial

Waynesboro City Councilwoman Alberta Anderson appears to be setting an example of “How Not to Succeed in Politics.”

The one- time member of the Georgia House of Representatives, a post she served in with relative distinction and dedication, has spent most of her time on city council as a gadfly and troublemaker. It doesn’t take much research to follow her trail of accusations, innuendos and disruptions which have fomented an atmosphere of acrimony in the Waynesboro city government.

It resulted in her being called out by City Manager Jerry Coalson in a November 2017 memo for “gossiping, talking about other employees and city officials, threatening employees, interfering and interrupting their work.”

Specifically, Anderson was visiting the Public Works Department several times a week, “causing a constant disruption” with her visits.

In response to Mayor Gregory Carswell’s admitted misuse of city vehicles and credit cards, as well as making false and misleading statements about travel expenses, Anderson tried to deflect attention by requesting GPS and gas receipt information for nine city employees and officials. The council wisely rebuffed her attempt to drag others into the mayor’s mess.

More recently, she attempted to infer an inappropriate relationship between Vice-Mayor Brenda Lewis and Police Chief Augustus Palmer, based on the fact that they had been seen having lunch together (along with others) at a local restaurant. That attempt fell flat when Lewis openly challenged her in an open meeting.

Now, she is again trying to “throw a little shade” on the chief and the vice-mayor by implying there was something improper regarding a minor accident Lewis had while driving a city vehicle. An investigation by Coalson cleared the air in that instance as well, showing there was nothing wrong about the way the situation was handled.

Councils and commissions are most successful when they govern by building a consensus.

It’s not too late for Anderson to make a positive contribution to the city, but she has to make a 180 degree turn for it to happen. Her constituents are not being fairly served by her current attitude.